The present description relates generally to an operating table extension useful for radial cardiac catheterization procedures. In particular, the present description relates to an arm board for use in radial cardiac catheterization procedures having both a radiolucent portion and a radiopaque portion.
Coronary diseases remain a leading cause of morbidity and mortality in Western societies and are treated using a number of approaches. It is often sufficient to treat the symptoms with pharmaceuticals and lifestyle modification to lessen the underlying causes of the disease. In more severe cases, however, it may be necessary to treat the coronary disease using interventional medical procedures such as cardiac catheterization. Cardiac catheterization procedures generally utilize a thin catheter passed through a major artery to access a patient's heart. In the United States, the femoral artery is most frequently used during cardiac catheterization procedures. Recent medical advancements, however, suggest that use of the radial artery is more convenient and may reduce both the length of the procedure and the risk of complications during the procedure. Despite these benefits, many doctors still remain reluctant to perform cardiac catheterization via the radial artery because the procedure requires the doctor to stand closer to the source of radiation for the medical imaging (e.g., x-ray photography), exposing the doctor to significantly more radiation during the procedure than the doctor typically is exposed to during femoral catheterization procedures.
Existing equipment used for positioning the patient's arm during radial cardiac catheterization procedures have numerous drawbacks that make it difficult for doctors to perform cardiac catheterization via the radial artery. For example, existing arm boards are made entirely of radiolucent materials that do not interfere with the medical imaging necessary during the procedure. The radiolucent materials, however, do not provide any protection from the radiation to the doctor performing the procedure. In addition, existing arm boards generally are of both an insufficient size and shape for performing cardiac catheterization and coronary intervention as they are not sufficiently supportive for the technical aspects of intervention. Cardiac catheterization procedures often require use of numerous surgical instruments including wires, guides, balloons, and stents, and many doctors prefer having a larger more supportive space upon which to manipulate these instruments. Cardiac catheterization procedures also can be very time consuming and result in loss of a large amount of blood from the patient. Existing arm boards used for positioning the patient's arm during cardiac catheterization procedures, however, have no means for containing the blood which ultimately flows off of the operating table and onto the surgeon or floor, and are not readily supportive for interventional instruments.
Accordingly, there exists a need for an arm board suitable for use during radial cardiac catheterization procedures. Desirably, the arm board should be designed using materials that can reduce and/or eliminate a doctor's exposure to radiation during the procedure without impairing the ability to obtain the necessary medical images during the procedure. Moreover, the arm board desirably also should be of a size and shape suitable for addressing other drawbacks of existing arm boards.